The Heir and His Heart
by SnapeIsMyEscape
Summary: Sequel to The Evil in Our Hearts. All that Gethin knew was the temple. He had been living there for as long as he could remember. When he embarks on his journey around the world, he stumbles across something oddly familiar.... Rated T for safety.
1. Prologue

A/N: And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, the sequel to the loved _Evil in Our Hearts_, I present to you now _The Heir and His Heart_!

_Prologue _

Adrienne Young was nervous. She paced around the throne room of her husbands citadel, muttering incoherently under her breath. Thunder rumbled in the distance, echoing off of the candle lit room.

"Chase…" she murmured, looking at the door in anticipation, "Where in the world are you?"

Several jungle cats also stared at the door, awaiting their Master's return. Some glanced at the muttering woman anxiously, wondering if they should try to console her or if they should just leave her be.

"Please, _please_ tell me he's okay…" she pleaded to the thunder as it rolled around the dwelling. "I wouldn't be able to stand it if he got hurt."

Suddenly, the heavy wooden door swung open and in stumbled a worn out Chase Young. His hair was windswept and his armor was grimy with mud, but he was basically unscathed.

"Chase!" Adrienne cried, rushing over and enveloping the exhausted warrior in a hug. "I was getting worried- is it done?" the woman pulled away and looked into her husband's yellow eyes, her own questioning.

The Immortal closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. "It is." he said softly, breathing out slowly.

Adrienne sighed sadly, turning away and taking several steps away. "Good." she replied quietly. Lightning lit the room through the skylight.

Chase also sighed and opened his eyes. "It had to be done, Adrienne." he said, taking a step towards her back. "You know it did. If Hannibal or Wuya ever found out-"

"I know," Adrienne interrupted, bowing her head. "I just wish I had gotten to be there."

Chase walked over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "It will be alright, love." he murmured, squeezing her shoulder gently. "Master Monk Guan is taking care of everything."

Adrienne put her hand on his and whispered, "He'd better. If anything happens to our son while he's in Guan's care…"

Chase said nothing, but a silent agreement passed between the pair.

After a while, they decided to retire for the evening. As she lay down to sleep she whispered, "Return to me, Gethin. My heir. My son."

_This Concludes the Prologue_


	2. Chapter One: Nice Kitty

Chapter One: Nice Kitty

"Young Monks," Master Fung said to his students during a break in their training, "I have exciting news."

The Wudai Warriors looked expectantly at their master. "What is it, Master Fung?" Riamundo asked, his arm around Kimiko's waist. They had been going out for about a year now.

"Yes, Master," Omi added, looking excited already, "What is this news you have for us?"

Master Fung smiled. "We are going to have a visitor from Master Monk Guan's Temple. A student who is about your age will be stopping in for a couple of days."

The Dragons in training were silent for a moment. The same thought ran through their heads- _Another student at Master Monk Guan's temple? _

"But- Master…" Omi started, perplexed, "Wouldn't we have seen this other student when we were sent to Master Monk Guan's temple to train?" The other three Monk's faces were screwed up into their own looks of confusion.

Upon hearing the question, Master Fung's smile vanished and a small frown creased his forehead. "Young ones," he said seriously, "Do not ask me about his past, for I do not know everything about him. When he gets here, I am sure he will be happy to answer any questions you may have."

"Master Fung," Clay drawled in his thick accent, "Can you at least tell us his name?"

The Master nodded. "His name is Gethin. That is all I can tell you."

"Hey, why all the mystery?" Riamundo asked, sounding slightly hurt by his masters lack of information, "Come on, don't you think we can handle a little more info on this guy? Like where his from and who his parents are-"

Master Fung silenced the group leader by saying, "You will find out when the time is right. Now, go and prepare his guest room. He will be here tomorrow morning."

The young apprentices bowed slightly and left, wandering into the barracks.

"I wonder what's so special about this Gethin kid," Raimundo said as soon Master Fung was out of earshot. "Like, why can't we know anything about him?"

"Who knows?" Kimiko said, shrugging. "Maybe he's super powerful or something."

"Either that or awfully strong," Clay put in as they came into the spare room. It used to be Omi's room, but he didn't like the sound of birds waking him up at the crack of dawn, so he moved down next to Clay.

"Or perhaps he is very wise!" Omi proclaimed as he unrolled the mat into the middle of the floor.

"Or maybe he's really charming." Kimiko sighed despite herself. Her three companions looked over at her, eyebrows raised. "It's just a thought," she said in her defense.

The three boys rolled their eyes and continued setting up the room.

* * *

"The woods is beautiful this time of day," a boy said as he walked through the forest, leaves crunching under his shoes and the sweet breeze in his nose. He smiled broadly, humming gently to himself. "Well, at least it's a glorious day! Otherwise walking might be more difficult." His smile grew and he hummed louder.

After a while, when the sun just barely touched the horizon, Gethin stopped and looked at the sky. It was a beautiful light blue, with stunning white clouds scattered across it, the ones closer to the setting sun tinged a light pink. Gethin sighed, contented.

"Nature is most wondrous. I love taking these walks. It lets me think and just be alone." The young man pause momentarily before saying, "But I really, _really_ miss Master Monk Guan." He sighed and sat down on the ground.

He sat there for a few moments in silence, staring off into space, his eyes glazed over and his teeth sinking into his bottom lip.

"Maybe I should start a fire," he finally murmured to himself. He stood up slowly and looked around. "I just need some twigs, stones and…matches. Dang it! I left the matches back at the temple!"

He kicked a stone into the undergrowth and crossed his arms over his chest huffily. "I knew I was forgetting something."

Suddenly, Gethin froze, listening intently. He heard something coming from the direction where he kicked the rock moments before.

Tentatively and against his better judgment, Gethin called out, "He-hello? Who's there?" he moved slowly towards the bushes, picking up his rucksack as he went. "I'm not going to hurt you. You can come out." He tried extremely hard to keep his voice from trembling with fear as he said this; he knew very well he couldn't hurt anything no matter how much he wanted to.

The leaves rustled some more. "Come out, come out whatever you are." Gethin said, forcing a smile onto his face.

There was no response, only the rustling of the leaves. Gethin gulped.

Suddenly, and without warning, there was a huge jungle cat right in front of the boy. Gethin, frozen in fear, gaped at the animal. It stared straight back; it's huge, yellow eyes staring into his light green ones intently.

After several tense moments, Gethin uttered weakly, "Nice kitty kitty."

The jungle cat tilted it's head to the side, it's eyes seeming to laugh at Gethin as he stood, week-kneed and scared shitless, before him. It let out a low growl that sounded almost like a laugh as it dropped something at the boys feet.

Gethin didn't move, but he allowed his eyes a curious glance to the object the cat had dropped. It was a small box of some sort. Looking up again quickly, he saw the great animal turn, it's muscles tensing, preparing to jump.

"Wait!" Gethin cried, moving one of his feet forward and throwing his arm out as if it alone could stop the creature. The jungle cat stopped, turning it's huge head towards the boy. "Um…thanks for not eating me."

The jungle cat growled slightly in reply and in the blink of an eye, it was gone. Gethin, still stunned, stood and stared at the place where it's yellow had been for several seconds before quickly shaking his head. "Whoa," he murmured, his hand going to his temples and his eyes closing, "That was strange."

Gethin picked up the small box. Turning it over in his hands, he saw a label scrawled in black ink: Matches.

_End Chapter One_

A/N: Woooooooo! I'm baaaaaack!


	3. Chapter Two: Arrival

Chapter Two: Arrival

Omi was the first one awake, as was usual in the Xiaolin Temple. He rolled over onto his side, yawning as he opened his eyes. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes and rose tiredly, stretching his growing arms up towards the sky. He was in the middle of touching his toes when he heard something from outside. He froze, his senses heightened as he heard it again. It was a low sort of mumbling encased by footfalls that fell rather noisily on the fallen leaves.

Omi closed his eyes and focused more closely. The footfalls were too light to be Clay's, and the guttural sound was, well, too guttural to be Kimiko, and it was too early for Raimundo. So that left him one possibility: this person was a foe.

Swiftly and silently, the temple's smallest Monk went to investigate the unusual noises.

* * *

Gethin had risen abnormally early the next morning because of the strange surroundings he found himself situated in. He had slept fitfully the entire night and dreamt of large toothbrushes chasing him about the forest, all the while calling, "Hey! Hey you! Where do you think you're going without a fresh pair of knickers?"

He set out as soon as he saw that his bladder and the fire were taken care of (which was fairly easy considering it took one action for both). He walked quickly, hoping that the sooner he got to the temple the sooner he would have a proper meal and a sounder sleep.

It took him three hours of fast walking to reach the Xiaolin Temple, and afterwards he was exhausted. The sun was just coming up, (he woke up at four – it was a terrifying dream) and, for some reason, the temple doors were open. He walked in and stumbled about, looking for someone, _anyone_ to tell him where the bunkers were.

"I can't _wait _to see that cot." He murmured to himself, sleepily rubbing his eyes. "I can barely keep my eyes open!"

He blundered around the strange grounds rather loudly, hoping that someone would find him soon when he was suddenly tackled to the ground. He managed to ask, "Huuuuuuh?" before a blow to the head knocked him out.

****

"Uhnnn…" Gethin slowly opened his eyes, blurry masses of green, blue and a small amount of yellow meeting his gaze. He was minutely aware of his arms and legs being tied separately. He blinked several times, each blink bringing a clearer picture.

"Look, he's waking up!" a female voice from his right said.

"Maybe now we can get some answers." A male voice confirmed. A hand touched Gethin's shoulder.

"You awake there, partner?"

Gethin managed a small nod, focusing on this new, friendly voice.

"Well, that's a relief." Friendly man said, "Now could yah tell my friends and me what yer name is?"

Gethin shook his head stiffly before croaking, "Gethin."

There was a slight pause before the not-as-friendly male voice said, "Nice going, Omi. You knocked out our guest."

"Well how was _I _supposed to know?" a new voice piped up, "I've never seen him before!"

"Oh my gosh, I am sooooo sorry!" the female cried, running into Gethin's line of vision. "Are you okay? Do you need an ice pack? Clay, untie him! This is soooo embarrassing…"

"It's okay," Gethin said offhandedly, massaging his recently freed wrists, "I understand how Omi felt. I'm a stranger here, after all."

"Well, that knocks one off of our list," Raimundo muttered to Omi, "If he was super powerful he could have blocked the attack."

"That is true," Omi agreed, looking at the newcomer with calculating eyes. He looked vaguely familiar, what with his shoulder-length black hair and lithe frame. The only thing that wasn't recognizable where his light green eyes.

Clay smiled at their guest. "Well, it's nice to meet yeh, partner."

Gethin finally looked at the friendly man. His breath caught in his throat and his eyes widened slightly. He saw an angel standing before him with golden hair that fell in front of beautiful baby blue eyes and a pearly white smile that made Gethin go weak in the knees. He was burley yet soft, country rough but with city charm. Gethin gave his best smile and said, "The pleasure is all mine."

****

After a much needed meal the Monks asked Gethin if he'd like to join their training session. He politely declined, knowing that he'd be no match for the almost legendary Elemental Dragons.

"Oh, but you must!" Omi (who was quickly becoming his role model,) insisted. "It will be vital in our- erm, Xiaolin records!"

"You guys keep records here?" Gethin asked in awe.

"Oh yeah, sure." Raimundo said, Kimiko nodding beside him, "We like to keep a count of all warriors who come through. I'm sure you'll be right up there Master Monk Guan."

Gethin beamed at the Shoku Warrior, flattered. "Alright," he said, a happy glint in his eyes. "I'll try to keep up."

Gethin was so excited about being with the Elemental dragons; he used to read the letters Master Fung sent to Master Monk Guan and dream of meeting these young yet powerful warriors. He was sort of a fan of theirs, quite possibly their only.

"Let's get started then." Raimundo clapped his hands together, rubbing them as if to keep warm as he and the rest of the Monks moved towards the Vault. Gethin fallowed.

Clay, who was walking next to Raimundo, looked back at the newcomer.

"Why'd you lie to 'im?" he asked quietly, his gaze turning to his leader.

Raimundo shrugged, keeping his pace fast. "I just want to know what's so special about him, and this will let me see first hand."

Clay shook his head. "Why not just ask 'im?"

Raimundo looked over at the Earth Dragon with an annoyed spark in his eye. "Because I just didn't, okay!" he hissed, throwing the door to the vault open.

"Ask me what?" Raimundo and Clay jumped as Gethin voiced his question from behind them.

"Uh- why we've never seen you before." Raimundo improvised quickly, turning to face the inquiring boy.

"Oh, that's easy." Gethin smiled. "I remember it like it was yesterday…"

_It was early morning when Gethin awoke to the sound of birds singing a happy song out side of his window. Since he was the only Monk in Training at the temple, he got his pick of rooms, and he naturally chose the room on the end next to the window, and he was glad he did. When he took an early day he loved watching the sun set from his small window. _

_As soon as his eyes opened he smiled and rolled off of his cot. Standing up, he stretched and yawned widely, closing his eyes briefly and reaching his hands towards the ceiling. "This is going to be a wonderful day." he said to himself, smiling broadly. He quickly dressed in the traditional robes and set off towards the mess hall._

"_Good morning!" he called to a group of Monks doing tai chi in one of the vast gardens. Most of them waved back and shouted back their own greetings. _

_The young man sauntered into the hall and sat down at that table where food was already served. He put some food onto his plate and tucked in._

"_Good morning, young one." Gethin smiled as his master's voice reached his ears. He rose from the table and bowed from the waist, replying, "And to you, Master Guan."_

_The older Monk smiled and nodded in reply. "I have some important news for you, Gethin," he said, standing with his hands behind his back._

"_In regards to the Dragons in Training at the other temple?" he asked, his green eyes glowing eagerly._

_Master Monk Guan smiled, unsurprised. Gethin was used to hearing about the other Monks and was always eager to hear about their progress. "Yes," he said seriously, his smile fading slightly. "I think that you should come with me."_

_Gethin raised an eyebrow and followed his master into the temple vault, not questioning his motive._

"_Sit down," Guan said, sitting on the floor and crossing his legs. Gethin did the same. _

"_What is wrong, Master?" he finally voiced, his voice slightly worried. _

_The Monk sighed. "Master Fung is sending the other Monks here to train." He said after a moment, "And I think it would be wise if I sent you there." Guan recoiled slightly after saying this._

_Gethin was silent for a moment. "I understand, master," he said softly, disappointed. "You don't want me to interrupt their training." the boy rose and sighed softly, "I'll start packing."_

"_Gethin," he looked to his master, "I am sorry. I just think it would just be better if you were to get experience working with another master for a while. It could greatly expand your knowledge of the world."_

"_You're just sending me away so I won't bother you while your training the Chosen ones, aren't you?" Gethin asked, tears suddenly springing to his eyes. "I promise that if you let me stay I won't get in the way! I'll just stay in my room! Please, please don't send me away!"_

_The Master Monk rose to his feet. "It won't be forever, Gethin," he said soothingly, "Only a month or two."_

"_But what if Master Fung is mean to me? What if he doesn't feed me? What if-"_

"_Master Fung is very kind and knows how what to feed young monks." Master Monk Guan said. _

"_But what about my chores?" Gethin rambled on, "Who will do them?"_

"_The other young Monks will," the Master answered._

"_But- but-"_

"_I'm sorry, young one, but you have to go."_

_Gethin hung his head and tears slipped out of his eyes. "But I don't want to."_

_Guan smiled a sad smile. "I know."_

_So Gethin, still crying, went off and packed his bags. He put in a couple of the books that his master had gotten him and put them in a small traveling bag. He collected his other set of work robes and his pair of more elegant robes and packed them away as well._

"_Come, young one," Master Monk Guan said from the doorway, "We have little time before the Chosen Ones arrive."_

_Sniffling, Gethin replied, "Yes Master." _

"So, you came here?" Raimundo asked, slightly awed.

Gethin nodded. "Yeah," he said in a nonchalant manner.

"Then, that means that Master Fung _does_ know you!"

"I guess so. I kind of pouted in my room for the first couple of days, but I came around eventually."

The others hardly listened as they looked at each other, all four of them thinking the same thing.

"Excuse us, Gethin," Kimiko said, "But there's been a slight change in plans."

"Oh," Gethin said, disappointment edged in his voice.

"We need to take care of something with Master Fung. You can go relax in your room, if you'd like."

"It's the one by the window, ironically enough."

And before he could reply, the others were halfway across the garden.

****

Gethin didn't remember his parents. In fact, he didn't even know who they were. To him they were just dark blobs of clay that he molded with his imagination. Sometimes, his parents were nice and loving; they would shower him with praise and love, never holding back their tears as they joyously hugged him. Other times, his parents were strong and kept away all the monsters that hid around his room. But, no matter what he imagined, they always loved each other.

His father would always hold his mothers hand as she cried over how she hadn't gotten to see her baby grow up and he always protected her from the especially big monsters. And his mother always hugged his father as he firmly shook Gethin's hand, a huge grin on his face and tears leaking out of his eyes, and she always kissed him on the cheek as the monsters would run away in fear, never to return to haunt their son again.

Yet, no matter how much he daydreamed, his parents never came. All he had was the temple, his master, his books and his chores. But he wasn't unhappy with that, because his master said that he'd get to see his parents again one day.

That day was coming faster and faster.

_This concludes Chapter Two_

Guess who's back back back, back again gain gain gain, Snape is back back back, tell a friend!

I HAVE CONQURED DEPRESSION! WOOT ME!


	4. Chapter Three: Preperations and Trees

Chapter Three: Preparations and Trees

Adrienne was eating breakfast when Chase burst into the throne room, out of breath and livid.

"What's wrong?" Adrienne asked nonchalantly, used to his random mood swings.

"They knocked him out." he growled, striding past his wife, knocking her bowl of cereal off the table in his rage.

Adrienne sighed, looking at the milk seeping out onto the stone floor. "Who knocked who out?" she asked, looking up at her husband as he sat down huffily in his throne.

"The monks knocked Gethin out!" he fumed, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling into space.

Adrienne's eyes got wide. "What?" she asked, her voice edged with uneasy laughter, "They knocked him out? How? Why?"

"I don't know!" Chase hissed, rising suddenly from his chair. "He was just walking around and then BOOM! He's on the ground, getting hit in the head!"

Adrienne stood frozen for a moment before waling cautiously over to Chase. "It was probably a mistake," she said gently, trying not to receive the grunt of his anger, "They probably thought he was trespassing or something-"

"That damn well better be the case!" Chase raged, shoving past Adrienne, nearly knocking her over, "Otherwise there's going to be Monk stew for dinner!"

Adrienne couldn't help but smile. She had only seen Chase this angry once before, and that was because she was denying him her thoughts. And she'd more heard it then seen it. "Chase, dear," she said, walking over and putting her hand on his shoulder, "It's comforting to know that you care that much about our son's welfare."

Chase sneered and pulled his shoulder out of Adrienne's reach. "I'm not mad that he got hurt, silly woman!" he chortled harshly, "He didn't stop the attack! Master Monk Guan failed in his training!"

Adrienne sighed once more and withdrew her hand. "Oh," she said quietly, "I see…" She didn't know exactly why she had expected Chase to care that Gethin had been knocked out, but now that she thought about it, she wasn't surprised. Chase wasn't that type of man; he thought that if you were hurt, then you deserved it somehow. If you were struck a hard blow, then it was your fault for being too weak to block it. If you broke down and cried, it was your fault for being unsure of yourself. His standards where high, and he liked it that way.

"So," Chase said, calmer now that he'd knocked things over and ruined breakfast, "Would you like to go see him?"

Adrienne's heart leapt. "Would I?" she asked excitedly, rushing forward and hugging Chase's arm.

Chase looked over at Adrienne and said, "Please get off of my arm. You know how I feel about you manhandling that certain appendage."

Adrienne quickly let go. "Sorry," she apologized softly.

"Right," Chase said, taking his wife's arm in his, "I'll get you all set up with an escort and get you over there right away."

"An escort?" his wife echoed, "Whatever for? It's just the Monks. They wouldn't try to hurt me!"

Chase turned and looked at Adrienne as if she was crazy. "Adrienne," he said tiredly, "This isn't the old days. You aren't a 'good guy' anymore. They WILL hurt you because you are with me. What in the world makes you think that they don't want you dead?"

Adrienne was taken aback for a moment. "Well," she said, struggling to think of anything that would make her sound a little less retarded, "I – I don't know. I guess I was caught up in the excitement of seeing my son again that I kind of forgot about people hating the air I breathe."

Chase shook his head, sighing. "Really, Adrienne, you really need to learn to keep your head in one place."

The woman bowed her head. "I'm sorry," she said again.

"And stop apologizing!" her husband snapped, "You sound like one of my – _our_ servants."

Adrienne looked nervously at the big cats that now walked lazily into the room. They still didn't like her much, thinking her very unworthy of their master's attention. They seemingly sneered at her as they sat and watched as she and Chase sauntered around the room.

"So, when do you want to go?"

"Right now, if possible."

"Good." Chase snapped, and several of the cats turned into crows, hopping over to her on their wickedly sharp claws. "The sooner you leave, the longer you have. You MUST be back by dark. If you are not, I will be…displeased. Am I understood?"

Adrienne nodded, leaning in and kissing Chase quickly. "I'll be careful," she quickly promised, about to leave.

Chase grabbed her shoulders and pulled her back so she'd look him square in the eyes. "You'd better," he said before kissing her soundly on the lips.

Gethin walked aimlessly through the wonderfully beautiful Temple, looking at all of the different trees, flowers, buildings…

"This is nice," he said to himself, "It's so different here. There are so many trees and flowers."

"Having young monks around helps things grow."

Gethin started then turned around. "Master Fung!" he cried, bowing at the waist, "I didn't see you there!"

"It's quite all right, young one." the old Master chuckled, "I tend to sneak up on people."

Gethin smiled and looked back up at Master Fung.

"Ah, I've missed that smile." Master Fung commented, giving his own thin lipped grin, "That smile of yours is one of the best I've seen in a Monk."

"Master Fung!"

The two men turned and saw the four Dragons in Training running across the grass, looking tiered and irate.

"Excuse me, young one." Master Fung said, turning back to Gethin, "But it would seem that the other's need me."

"Of course, Master," Gethin said bowing. "I think I'll go sit under that Cherry Blossom Tree I saw a little Earlier. It is a little hot out."

The old Master nodded before turning to face his wards.

Gethin wandered off towards the beautiful pink flowers of the Temple's Cherry Blossom Tree.


	5. Chapter 4: Romance and Infections

Chapter Four: Romance and Infections

Gethin hadn't been to the Temple for a very long time, so a lot of things had changed. One thing that hadn't was the Cherry Blossom Tree standing before him now. It looked exactly the same as when he had last seen it; the full blossoms swaying in the breeze, the sun winking at him through the thin branches – it was all so picturesque.

"You never seem to get older, tree," he smiled, sitting against the trunk, "I bet you don't remember me. The last time I was here I was much shorter. I've grown up a bit, tree. I'm glad I still like sitting in your shade. Are you glad, too?"

A blossom floated gently down and landed in his lap. The boy smiled and laughed; giggles that permeated the gentle breeze, carrying over to the Wudia Warriors. Only one of the four teens heard it and he turned his head to look back at the dark haired boy.

_I wonder why he's laughin', _Clay thought, scratching his head.

"Master Fung, why wouldn't you tell us that he's been here before?" Raimundo questioned wildly, recapturing the Earth Dragon's attention.

"I did not see it as important information," the man replied calmly, watering some flowers, "Why does this disturb you so, young ones?"

"Because you know him, Master Fung!" Kimiko interjected, "You could easily tell us what's so special about him. We wouldn't need to be so sneaky and deceitful if you would just tell us what you know about him."

"Yes Master," Omi added, "You have told us a falsehood and we demand that you – "

A loud crash and a squeal of pain made the conversation come to a screeching halt. All eyes were now on a very strange scene: Gethin, who had been sitting so peacefully before, was now sprawled on his back, gawking at a cursing Adrienne. The woman had landed upside-down on the back of her neck, her legs thrown against the trunk of the tree. She was covered and cherry blossoms.

"Adrienne Young!" Omi cried as the four Wudai Warriors bounded over to stand in front of the still stunned Gethin, "What are you doing here? Trying to attack sneakily?"

The red-head rolled over quickly and stood, brushing the flowers from her clothing. "No, Omi, I'm not trying to pull a sneak attack," she said, a trace of venom in her words. "I was just – "

"Well, why else would you have so many crows with you?" Kimiko asked, flipping her hair.

"I – "

"You're not getting' yer grubby paws on our Wu," Clay snarled. Gethin looked up at him from the ground, a respect glowing in his eyes that he'd only felt for Master Monk Guan.

Adrienne looked annoyed. "I'm not here for your Wu! I'm here because –"

"Oh, are you trying to take us out then?" Raimundo cut in, "Good luck with that!"

"I'm here for him!"

The whole Temple went silent as a slender finger pointed at the dark haired youth still on the ground. The four Dragons stared at him, transfixed, wondering why in the world the Youngs would want to waste time on him.

"Me?" Gethin asked sheepishly, a light blush crossing his cheeks. "Why? Are you from another temple? Do you know where my parents are?"

Pain crossed Adrienne's face as the question lingered in the air. Tears sprang into her eyes before she looked away. "N-no…" she stammered, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not from another temple."

Gethin, not seeing her distress, asked, "Do you know where my parents are, then? Monk Guan said that I'd find them eventually through one person or another – "

"I don't know where they are!" Young shrilled, tears leaking out of her eyes. "Now stop asking stupid questions!"

Gethin fell silent, looking crestfallen. Clay felt a pang of pity for the boy, so he stepped up to the crying woman to give her a piece of his mind.

A great uproar came from the above crows, some taking to flight while others swooped to protect their mistress. They dove at the cow boy, sharp talons outreaching.

"Ah!" Clay covered his face with his hands as the birds clawed and pecked at him. Pieces of his shirt fell in tatters to the ground, blood mixing with the light blue fabric.

"Clay!" As his companions ran to help, Gethin stared at the still crying woman. She looked so sad…but why? What had he said to make her feel so terribly? He felt a twinge of guilt; he wanted to go comfort her, to tell her he was sorry. She seemed so familiar…

"Shoo! SHOO!" A squawk went up as Kimiko shot fire at the attacking birds. They all took flight, going back to their master to tell him all about their mission. Adrienne followed slowly behind, her eyes red and puffy.

"Clay? Clay, are you alright?" Gethin then remembered the blond angel and his stomach leapt into his throat; was his angel okay?

"Yeah, yeah. I'm okay," the burly boy grunted. His arms were cut in a crisscross sort of pattern while his cheeks only suffered minor cuts.

"We should get you to the infirmary so those don't get infected," Kimiko muttered, taking one of his hands in hers. "C'mon."

As Gethin watched the pair walk away, he felt jealousy well up inside of him. _He_ wanted to hold Clay's hand.

"You okay, Gethin?" Gethin jumped when Raimundo addressed him.

"Oh, yes. I'm fine, Raimundo, thanks." The boy answered, bowing quickly.

The Latino looked tired as he started after his two friends. "Good. I'm going to go check on Clay. Why don't you and Omi chat for a bit, okay? I'll be back later."

So the leader departed, leaving the two Temple raised boys alone, each with his own thoughts.

Gethin was worried, oh so very worried. What if Clay got there too late and the cuts got infected? What if he needed to get his arms amputated? He'd have to leave the Temple and then Gethin would never see him again! Gethin shook his head quickly. That probably wouldn't happen; they were just cuts. It's not like the crows had poison tipped talons or anything – did they?

While Gethin was having his mini freak out, Omi was observing him from a distance. The dark haired boy looked so familiar, but Omi was certain that he'd never met him before. His mannerisms were also very memorable…but they didn't seem to fit his physical profile. Who was this mysterious boy, and why did he remind Omi of someone he couldn't name?

"This is all very confusing," Omi said quietly to himself, "Perhaps if I talk to him for a little bit – " but Gethin was gone. "Where did he go?"

* * *

Clay flinched as Kimiko cleaned his cuts with alcohol.

"Does it hurt?" the girl asked, worry evident in her blue eyes as she removed the saturated cotton ball from his flesh.

Gritting his teeth, Clay nodded. "'S nothing I cain't handle," he said, clenching his fists.

Kimiko nodded, reapplying the swab. The Texan hissed quietly, squeezing his eyes closed.

"Stop being such a pansy, Clay," Raimundo drawled from the doorway. Kimiko shot him a glare as he sauntered into the room, sitting on Clay's other side.

"That's hardly the way to treat your injured friend, Rai," Kimiko scolded, still carefully cleaning the abrasions.

"Those? I'd hardly call that a wound. Besides, Clay knows I'm joking around. Right, Clay?" the Latino thumped Clay's back heartily, making him wince.

"Righ', Rai."

"What is Raimundo talking about?" Six eyes turned to greet Omi as he walked into the room, his hands in his sleeves.

Raimundo's face was contorted in confusion. "Omi, I thought you were with Gethin."

The bald Monk shrugged. "He went off on his own somewhere. I looked away for two seconds and he was gone. It was almost like he thinned into air!"

"You mean disappeared into thin air," Clay corrected pensively. "Wonder where the little guy got off to?"

* * *

"You did WHAT?"

Adrienne flinched as Chase towered over her, a deep scowl on his face.

"I'm sorry, Chase! I didn't mean to fall out of the tree – I just lost my balance and fell – I'm sure Gethin isn't hurt –"

Chase snorted and grabbed his wife's arm. "I don't _care_ if you hurt him! The only thing I'm worried about is whether or not anyone made a connection between you and the child! If they recognized that you two have the same eyes then they could realize just whose son he _is_. That would bring up a lot of awkward questions, would it not?"

Adrienne lowered her gaze to the ground. "I'm sorry. I didn't think about that."

"Obviously," Chase sneered, releasing the woman's wrist from his grasp.

Adrienne flinched at the harshness of his tone. Realizing that he had probably hurt her feelings, Chase sighed. "It's – it's okay, Adrienne," he said awkwardly, trying to make up for his harshness, "We all make mistakes. Well, I don't, but it's to be expected from a human, such as yourself."

Smiling at the choppy apology, Adrienne gave her husband a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you," she said, the small smile glowing. Chase felt something in his chest tighten, but quickly dismissed it.

"You're welcome," he replied, brushing by the redhead in an awkward attempt to end the conversation.

Still smiling, Adrienne decided to go to the library and read "Romancing the Stone".

**A/N: And that there is a chapter long overdue. I've been working on it for a couple of days in between fighting with parents and crying myself to sleep. At least the buds of romance between two boys can make me happy. Lol**

**Review to tell me how much you missed me!**


End file.
